New Rules for Black President

 "The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president"

                                                                                                   Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell 

The Supreme Court ruled against President Barack Obama in National Labor Relations Board v. Noel Canning on Thursday, limiting his power to make recess appointments.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday limited the president's power to fill high-level vacancies with temporary appointments, ruling in favor of Senate Republicans in their partisan clash with President Barack Obama.

The court's first-ever case involving the Constitution's recess appointments clause ended in a unanimous decision holding that Obama's appointments to the National Labor Relations Board in 2012 without Senate confirmation were illegal. Obama invoked the Constitution's provision giving the president the power to make temporary appointments when the Senate is in recess.

Problem is, the court said, the Senate was not actually in a formal recess when Obama acted.

Obama had argued that the Senate was on an extended holiday break and that the brief sessions it held every three days were a sham that was intended to prevent him from filling seats on the NLRB.  

This is where the rubber hits the road when it comes to voting, many voters fail to realize in a mid term election our president and congress may have to actually appoint a Supreme Court Justice to the bench. Ginsburg, Breyer and Kennedy are possibly going to retire soon and if so who will replace them? When Obama came to office in 2009 he unfortunately was stuck with 5 ultra conservative Bush appointees to the Supreme Court, of which two Thomas and Scalia should be investigated for campaigning for causes that will be ruled on by the court eventually. How can they be trusted to rule on cases like a Roe v Wade or a case where discrimination is in the forefront. If not for Kagan, Sotomayor , Ginsburg, and Breyer our nation would be in trouble for sure. If the Democrats take back the house and a larger majority hold on the senate that will at least get our nation back to work on the issues that real Americans have to face daily. Governing will actually exist again as opposed to the constant committee inquisition hearings under the likes of ISSA and Fox News.  

The Dems should constantly go on offence be prepared for any and all rulings that may not turn out a particular way they should roll play with their spokespeople and speak as one voice which the the republicans have been able to master, facts don't matter to them , they just continue to tout the talking points before the media and the people and it is most assuredly true that the uninformed and ignorant will believe what they this especially true for the broadcast media.

Everytime the president has a bad news story the press wants to make it into an Obama waterloo but if the president has a good news story the press is nowhere to be found. The only way to change the narrative is to Vote the Repub bullies out of office 2014.   

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/26/supreme-court-recess-appointments_n_5533174.html  

9/11 a Day of Remembrance

On Tuesday morning September 11, 2001 fourteen years ago this week while getting ready for work I turned on the television as I often do in order to check the local weather and traffic report which is a normal practice for commuting suburbanites who have to travel some twenty plus miles or more to work and back. I had no idea that this particular sunny day an event would take place that would forever change the lives of millions of Americans and the world for  decades to come.

Our local Los Angeles newscast was preempted by a live video feed from New York City and what first seemed to be just a containable fire coming from a floor in the World Trade Center soon became a story about a possible small Cessna airplane that flew off course into one of the Twin Towers in Manhattan.  

The Video Footage Changed the Story

Within minutes of the first live journalistic assumptions and questions, a video footage showing a large (high jacked ) passenger transcontinental air plane crashing into the north tower of the WTC,  the public later learned it was American Airline flight 11 caring 92 passengers of which there were no survivors.

While observing the live feed from New York a second plane crashed into the south tower... once I witnessed this tragic event, I knew right away, this was no accident, and my family and I were now witnessing in real time... one of the most horrific and heroic moments in our nations (ever changing) history. 

The second plane was United flight 175 carrying over 60 passengers. Two other flights were also hijacked on the same day flight 77 which was taken off route and was heading for the the Pentagon in Arlington Virginia , and the last flight 93 which was assumed to be en-route to land into the White House or the Capitol.   

What Have We Learned ? 

Each September 11 we still mourn those whose lives were taken on that fateful morning, and we honor the thousands of service men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice defending our nations freedom as a result of our response to this tragic day.

Today I am saddened and disappointed in the way some have used this terrible moment in our history to excuse their bigoted remarks, and physical and verbal attacks on innocent citizens and others who are seeking a peaceful solution to the bitter narrative of anger, and revenge and even racist ideology and practice.  
Recent news stories shed some light on how 9/11 still is a tool of manipulation to further the political and bitter agenda of some.... and as we have seen there has arisen a violent agenda where those who cant tell a Sikh from a Muslim have attacked them as well as others because of their style of dress or worship or form of worship. 

Today in our very own nation we still have the continued leftovers of the rhetoric of fear, anger and violence that permeates much of talk radio and cable news. Before 9/11 America was not perfect by no means we are still learning and growing and at that time we were still coping with the questionable presidential win of George W. Bush and still a little angry with Bill Clinton for his Lewinsky affair forcing his Republican enemies to impeach him.   

Even with all that division most American's never hated their fellow country men and woman in such a way that our politics kept us from communicating with each other or working to accomplish a greater good for the nation like raising the Debt Ceiling or renewing the Civil Rights Act and fringe groups who espoused ideological separatism, by race or religion were not given air play and for the most part remained the shadows.     

Something changed after a year or two of strong patriotism our fear of the unknown caused us to look at each other with suspicion almost like going back to 1859 our nation started to divide, and against the will of many our military and political leaders created a prison camp for those who were sympathizers of Al Qaeda or the Taliban. Out of frustration our leaders over saw the torture of men maybe women to gather intelligence on Osama Bin Laden whereabouts. 

The major problem was we used torture as a way to try and get information which led to an international out cry but we did not care the attitude was the captured Iraqi soldiers were going to talk even if they knew nothing. While we searched all over Afghanistan for Osama and fighting the Taliban and Al Qaeda it was decided to start another war with Iraq at the same time. We felt since they were a small country we could take them out with ease. Vice President Dick Cheney and others said it would be a cake walk and the people of Iraq would greet us as liberators.        

    attack innocent citizens for being supporters of terrorism if they did not agree with the administration's very questionable war.  

Now vile bitter attacks started to become the norm and by 2004 entertainers like the Dixie Chicks were receiving death threats and this was par for the course for anyone who disapproved of the Iraqi war. We were told and manipulated to hate any person, group or nation that did not agree  


 hated France    and has become a financial juggernaut for some whose very existence is centered on anger war and disdain for others who do not agree with their idea of freedom.   

How the World See's Us 

Other countries there are those who despise our nations freedoms while (at the same time) using religion to fan the flames of division in their own nation. We are still learning how to cope with what happened and even after the the end of the war in Iraq and the counter intelligence of the CIA and our   brave Navy Seal Team 6 Special Ops who found and brought Osama Bin Ladin to justice a year ago, their are wealthy powerful entities within our nation who profit from Americans turning on each other not realizing that plays into the hands of those who committed this horrendous act.

How do we pay our Respect?

Some will use this solemn day of remembrance to offer service to others donating their time and skills, such as helping in a shelter for the less fortunate, assisting in building homes, donating or serving food at a food bank, giving monetary assistance to a charity or church out reach program. Whatever we could do to offer some menial service to those in need, cannot in any way compare to what our service men and women encounter each day on the battlefields of Afghanistan.


This week rather than focusing on the negatives of those who have used 9/11 for their personal agenda, (which in most cases has some negative slant), I choose to offer a narrative of respect and honor to the lives of those lost and to my country as a whole.


Billy Graham in one of his last national appearances with a sitting president  stated " We come together today to reaffirm our conviction that God cares for us, whatever our ethnic, religious or political back ground may be." 

Like many Americans I was worried that this was not the end of attacks. I was raised with a strong faith in God’s sovereign ability to watch over our nation, knowing we as Americans would have to rely on each other and Gods mercy to get us through this painful moment for years to come.

To all of our First Responders Police, Firemen, Safety Officers, Paramedics, and much more...May God Bless you the 9/11 Families, the men and women of the Armed Services and their families, our President, Congress, and finally May God Bless the United States of America.


K. Gerard Thomas 2012

Eric Holder Attacks Why?

Half of Americans did not know who Eric Holder was until this issue was given more and more press. This type of issue existed from the days of Reagan Iran-Contra 86 ,we gave weapons to our future enemies in Afghanistan, Bush Administration started Project Gun Runner which started in Laredo Texas by the ATF in 2005. Once again this "Fast and Furious" started under the Bush administration not Obama. Republicans have been so successful at blaming the black president and his black AG for Bushes left over sins...now that Americans actually know who Holder is.. they are more prone to believe  he is worse then Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Hallburton Cheney, Oliver North, and a host of others Neo Cons whose sins are many and cost thousands of lives.

Get the Negro out of office ( yeah i went there) even though his back ground has been good and he was accepted by both Dem and Repubs. Don't forget how Rummy, Cheney and Fox News attacked Colin Powell and even in some circles Connie Rice.  We are in need of Jobs and our congress is constantly trying every thing they can to keep fighting the president that is all they want to do, forget about you and me we don't matter to them and in some cases both parties guilty. 

Consider the source of information. Issa has wanted to go after President Obama from day one and he and his crazed Posse have multitudes of money to keep attacking till some one quits or give information that could be detrimental.  They can fire Attorneys for no reason but following the law, Alberto Gonzales and the Bush administration and Issa called the investigation a "Witch Hunt"...... Really!   .                 

Before this witch hunt began half of Americans did not know who Eric Holder was or what he looked like but once the picture of holder became national news ...Nuff Said...yeah I am going there.  Reagan Iran-Contra 86.  Bush administration ATF started Project Gun Runner in Laredo Texas in 2005 ( what's interesting is )     not one member of the ATF from the Bush administration was called to testify as to Project Gun Runners beginnings.  Naming this scandal "Fast and Furious" projects a negative image that is tied to the movie. Holder found out about it in 2011 and stopped it.

As an Attorney General he is bound by Attorney Client Confidentiality not to give information that could put others lives in jeopardy. and giving over 2010 -2011 email conversations is only for one reason to try to find something to hurt the Obama administration  The Republicans are good at tapping into the psych  of many in America who just cant get over the Idea we have an African American president and an African American Attorney General, thus they are much more easily to be distrusted and as for the benefit of the doubt they would give others... Do not Apply

A Day of Remembrance

 

Ten years ago while getting ready for work I turned on the television as I often do in order to check the local weather and traffic report just like most commuting suburbanites who have to travel some twenty plus mile or more to work and back, we had no idea that this terrorist attack would for ever change the lives of millions of Americans for ever.

Our local Los Angeles newscast was preempted by a live video feed from New York City and what first seemed to be just a containable fire coming from a floor in the World Trade Center soon became a story about a possible small Cessna airplane that flew off course into on of the Twin Towers in Manhattan.  

The Video Footage Changed the Story

Within minutes of the first live journalistic assumptions and questions, a video footage showing a large (high jacked ) passenger transcontinental air plane crashing into the north tower of the WTC,  the public later learned it was American Airline flight 11 caring 92 passengers of which there were no survivors.

While observing the live feed from New York a second plane crashed into the south tower once I witnessed this tragic event  before my very eyes, I knew right away, this was no accident, and my family and I were now witnessing in real time one of the most horrific and heroic moments in our nations ever changing history.  The second plane was United flight 175 caring 60 passengers as well as the hijackers. Two other flights were also hijacked on the same day  flight 77 which was en route for the Pentagon in Arlington Virginia ,  and flight 93 which was assumed to be en-route for the White House.  

Like many Americans I was worried that this was not the end of attacks. I was raised with a strong faith in God’s sovereign ability to watch over our nation, knowing we as Americans would have to rely on each other and Gods mercy to get us through this painful moment for years to come.

What Have We Learned ? 

As a result of what took place on September 11, 2001 multiple lives have been affected worldwide. Each year since we still mourn those whose lives that were taken on that fateful morning, and we honor the thousands of service men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice defending our nations freedom.

Today I am saddened and disappointed in the way some have used this terrible moment in our history to excuse their bigoted remarks, and physical and verbal attacks on innocent citizens and others who are seeking a peaceful solution to the bitter narrative of anger, racism, and revenge.


Recent news stories shed some light on how 9/11 has become a tool of manipulation to further the political, monitory, and racist agenda for those who continue to fan the flames of division in our nation and the world. We are still learning how to accept what happened it is a process but we must not turn on each other because that would play into the hands of those who committed this horrendous act.

How do we pay our Respect?

Some will use this solemn day of remembrance to offer service to others donating their time and skills, such as helping in a shelter for the less fortunate, assisting in building homes, donating or serving food at a food bank, giving monetary assistance to a charity or church out reach program. Whatever we could do to offer some menial service to those in need, cannot in any way comparing to what our service men and women encounter each day on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan.


This week rather than focusing on the negatives of those who have used 9/11 for their personal agenda, (which in most cases has some negative slant), I choose to offer a narrative of respect and honor to the lives of those lost and to my country as a whole.


Billy Graham in one of his last national appearances with a sitting president Reverend Graham stated " We come together today to reaffirm our conviction that God cares for us, whatever our ethnic, religious or political back ground may be." 


May God Bless the 9/11 Families, the men and women of the Armed Services and their families, and our President and Congress and finally May God Bless the United States of America.


K. Gerard Thomas

Can He Find His Voice?

Is president Obama playing possum or is the real battle over? This is a concern by many voters almost a year before the November 2012 presidential election.

The upcoming September eighth presidential speech on jobs before a joint session of Congress is causing some in the Washington beltway to nervously wonder what the president is going to say, and if the president does not offer a big bold plan to increase employment, would he run the risk of causing many Americans to become tone deaf to his message or plans?

If he offers the same intellectual highbrow speech or plan that is over the head of the average Joe or Jane citizen it could back fire, Obama already is having a problems convincing some that he is a willing and able fighter on the behalf of the people, and not since his March 2008 speech on race has there been as much hype or concern about what he will say or do.

Obama was perceived to be a strong fighter during his 2007-08 campaign run, but three years later that perception has come under serious attack by some of his most loyal defenders. With unemployment stagnant at 9.1 percent and zero job growth in August 2011 it is affecting the Obama brand. 

Consumer confidence is at an all time low and what appears to be the administrations inability to connect with a large segment of the American public is now (according to different national polls) having a strenuous negative affect on the president’s re-election campaign.    

President Obama’s latest speech before union workers in Detroit, MI on Labor Day 2011 is by all accounts a foreshadowing of his upcoming national speech and he appeared to show a new - fresh willingness to stand against the tea party members of congress and their regular desire to say no to any compromise.  Some are still worried that the presidents speech or plan will offer the same rhetoric and he will cave and offer more concessions to the Republicans and Wall Street leaving the middle class Americans and the jobless with very little hope to latch onto.

K Gerard Thomas  

Camp David

Editorial

According to Bloomberg Business Week  President Barack Obama is  entertaining the idea of having the negotiation meetings over the debt ceiling at Camp David of which the Republicans are refusing to do as of late.

  

Since when does the president of the United States need to go to Camp David to raise the debt ceiling?  The president most often uses Camp David for vacation or for the purpose of negotiating with foreign dignitaries of nations such as China, Russia or Israel.

Camp David has never been needed to negotiate with our very own members of congress in order to raise the debt ceiling, how ridiculous is that?      

Unfortunately we now have members of congress who are willing to place our nations financial standing at risk for the sake of their lust for power.

Unfortunately we now have a democratically elected president who is forced to treat our Republican members of congress like foreign dignitaries who need to be swayed to a more peaceful resolution for the sake and safety of the civilized world. 

Most of these same congressional (so-called leaders) raised the debt ceiling for George Bush seven times.  Now to keep them from screwing up our country even more then they already did under Bush and their Wall Street Lords we have to endure this foolishness because they have a mandate destroy Obama at all cost even if it means Rome Burns.   

K. Gerard Thomas


http://www.toledoblade.com/Nation/2011/07/12/Debt-limit-talks-testy-as-deadline-closes-in.print
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-07-14/obama-may-summon-lawmakers-to-camp-david-to-save-debt-talks.html

Who Gives A Damn about the Un-employed

 

The unemployment crisis in our nation is staggering and those of us, who care, are asking is there a foreseeable solution, and if there is a solution, who out of our nations elected leaders will make a courageous attempt to work together to attack this problem head on? 

In a free labor and free market society our citizens are not forced to work, but it is the greater majority often forgotten , middle class, law abiding,  union supporting or not, working Americans , who are the heart and soul of our country, and they assure our nations posterity is secure and have done so for decades.     

Our politicians from the White House on down to the community activist all say the same thing, "we need to find and offer better jobs for our nations unemployed citizens", this has been the mantra of both parties especially since the most recent unemployment rate stats showed a jump from 9.1 percent to 9.2. so question for both parties " Where are the Jobs?"     

Democratic Agenda for Change

In 2008 presidential candidate Barrack Obama made mention of the need to build new infrastructure jobs right here in the United States, he forged ahead to concentrate on green jobs that will be the wave of the future he has in many ways made a concerted  effort to fulfill his campaign promise but he seems to constantly be distracted with Washington grid lock.    

President Obama believed that he was able to build some bipartisan agreement between both parties,  but as of yesterday Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner made it clear there will be no working together with the president for raising of the debt ceiling and as of now a jobs bill does not seem likely before the 2012 elections. 

I’m sure Obama or his young administration never dreamed that the Republicans would oppose him on such a monolithic scale that elder Republican statesmen from served under the Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush1 and Bush 2, administrations don't recognize this new( Throw the baby out with the bath tub)  conservatives.

You can’t blame the president for trying, after all he is an optimist, (almost to a fault) according to some progressives and Democratic leaders. He campaigned on Hope and Change but that was not what Washington wants for it’s citizenry.  

Republican Ideological Agenda for Change

In 2010 with the Tea Party controlled Republican Party beat out most of their Democratic rivals on such large scale that it was a national game changer and put the Republicans in charge of the House of Representatives, now some are having buyers remorse.  

Many in America thought it would be a good idea to have both parties share in the responsibility in running our nations government, but, to our great disappointment the election of 2010 turned out to be more of the same old chicken and gravy and sound bites for the camera.

House Majority Leader Speaker John Boehner promised that he would work on Job growth, yet up to this day we do not have a jobs bill from the Republicans, even after Boehner chided Obama by asking “ Mr. President where are the Jobs”?     

They are however passing laws against Planned Parent Hood, Acorn, Workers Unions, Black, Latino, elderly, and  young college age voters, text books, gay marriage, the minimum wage, Medicare and Medicaid, Social Security , Head Start, Pell Grants, Legal Representation and any other organization or person who does not fit into their warped Christian Americana ideological thinking.                          

Bipartisan Compromise ( Never )

The problem with the White House and its spokes people is the nation is not buying their talking points and as a result it is causing great doubt in rather the Obama administration could actually deliver on their promises.

This does not mean that they are not making an effort, it just means they have to amp up the sounding board, When was the last time there were more Democrats or progressive spokes persons then Republicans or tea party members on a Sunday political talk show or cable network.?                           

President Obama once said “Why do we keep doing things the same way and expect a different result”;  Obama continues to meet with the Republicans in hopes of finding some type of compromise on their part that will help our nations citizenry, but, unfortunately he seems to think he is working with a Republican party of the seventies or the eighties.

A great majority of the new GOP leadership appear to believe that (Obama) is the anti-Christ so they will not compromise with the spawn of Satan.  Any thing he wants is against Gods law and as far as they are concerned he is not a real American, and does not believe in true Christianity.         

Since both political parties’ are latent with millionaire senators and representatives it is no wonder it is hard to get them to put away their limited ideological views for the betterment of our nation. 

One party has made it clear that they are only concerned about tax subsidies for the top two percent multimillionaires and billionaires who in their opinion won’t help the working class if congress takes away their tax right offs on their personal planes and yachts.

The other party keeps taking their base for granted assuming they will except any deal regardless of how many citizens it may hurt, the administration is perceived as weak when it comes to the art of negotiations and that will be an Achilles heel for the current administration in 2012 campaign.       

Bottom Line

Who Cares about the back bone of our nation those citizens who worked for years at the same company only to find their jobs have been phased out or shipped out to another country where the labor market is considered more cost effective for the company, not to mention the share holders who can reap millions of dollars in dividends in one year or quarter when will we see them on television telling their stories instead of millionaire congress men and women who seem to care very little.      

Both parties take there constituents for granted and they continue to prove that lying and deceit is par for the course in Washington DC and our whole nations needs come secondary to their lust for wealth and power bottom line many Americans feel they just don't give a damn !    

Kevin G. Thomas